The document provides an analysis of observations from a professional development course for in-service teachers. It summarizes:
1) The teachers show interest in the content but feel it is not useful for their students due to socioeconomic status.
2) They struggle with understanding vocabulary but engage more when it's explained.
3) Activities involving images, groups and technology help the teachers' understanding and participation.
1. Observations carried out in the Professional Development Course
Transcription Analysis
Name of the teacher: Claudia Cardenas. 2.1 In this sample, it is evident that the in-service teachers are trying to
Date of observation: September 27th 2012. give some use to the knowledge they are given, but they relate it to their
1. Classdevelopment students and conclude that it is not so useful for the children they teach
The class has a coherent development. Everything is connected because of their socio economic status.
to the topic ( the games, activities, etc.).
The class is also connected to previous classes’ topics; however, 3.1 This comment demonstrates how important it is for the in-service
T needs to re-explain some vocabulary due to Ss forgetting. teachers to understand the vocabulary since in that way, they are going
Ss say the topic of nutrition is not good for children because they to be more concentrated on what they are learning and they do not have
don’t have money to buy healthy food. to worry about looking for the vocabulary they do not know.
Ss get more engaged when they start understanding the
vocabulary; however, they keep answering in Spanish all the 1.1 This piece of evidence shows how the in-service teachers react when
time. they do not understand. The in-service teachers feel lost in the
2. Givinginstructions instructions and their response is to use expressions that show confusion
Clear enough, but she still needs to use Spanish to call for their in order to obtain a new explanation from the teacher.
attention.
When T gives instructions in English, their response is
“mmmmm?” “hummm” so T has to explain in Spanish. 1.2 This sample shows that the in-service teachers do not show an
T has to repeat constantly “no Spanish” “don’t translate”. appropriate response to the class since they do not try to use the target
T gives personal examples in English avoiding Spanish as much as language to communicate with the teacher; instead, they use their
possible. native language.
Code switching has to be constant.
3. T/L interaction in unexpected situations 1.3 This comment can be related to the comment in 1.2 due to the fact
that the in-service teachers are using their native language most of the
Their interaction is in English from the T and Spanish from the Ss.
time, which is not recommended when learning a new language.
T uses Spanish to clarify every explanation.
Ss answer with isolated words and mix them with Spanish when
necessary.
Sometimes T talks and Ss interrupt or keep talking about other
1.4 In this sample we can evidence that the in-service teachers have a
things, so the T has to talk louder and in Spanish.
positive reaction towards the material, but it is because of the use of
2. 4. Ts as Ls reactions towards the class Spanish by the teacher when explaining it.
Ss interact with the material exploring it with the T.
They wait until the material is explained in Spanish. 3.2 This evidence that the in-service teachers have a better
They only understand English instructions when the T uses understanding when the teacher uses additional material or aids, in this
images. case images, that can help with the explanation of the instructions.
The material involves mostly videos and handouts.
Spanish is needed, the use of dictionary is also necessary.
The material is based on real life situations so T needs to explain
and explore constantly. 3.3 In this sample, we can see that the in-service teachers have a good
5. Ts as Lsparticipation reaction when working in groups, but they keep using their mother
TTT is higher, LTT is mostly in Spanish. tongue for communicating between them instead of using the target
The use of English form the Ls is still limited. language in order to practice it.
Their participation is constant in Spanish.
3.4 This piece of evidence shows that the predominant or most
They get more engaged in group activities and participate in
important language for the in-service teachers is their native language.
groups, but in Spanish almost all the time.
English is used sometimes and requires efforts from the Ss.
1.5 This piece of evidence demonstrates the in-service teachers’ reaction
6. Peer work
when the teacher asks them to work in pairs. Here we can see that they
Between them Spanish is priority.
do not like to work in pairs and, according to the sample 3.3, they prefer
They just name some words in English, their reaction to work in
working in larger groups.
pairs is not enthusiastic.
They take long time to finish a simple activity.
3. Transcription Analysis
Observation 04-10-2012
Name of the teacher: Dolly Ramos
1. ClassDevelopment:
- T starts with a dictation. Ss write what they listen. Then, Ss
learn the body parts. They write the vocabulary. Then, they
listen to another dictation in which they have to write just
the body parts that they hear. Then, T plays the listening in
each sentence and asks them to tell her what they hear.
- T reviews the body parts in order to check pronunciation. Comentario [u1]: Teache
- 3.1 T asks Ss to draw the organs. Then, they listen to the
3.1 This comment represents how students are aware of their own
pronunciation of the organs.
- T shows a video about the circulation. Then, she asks them learning process on the grounds of the fact that they pronounce the
to do a word search about the parts of the heart. Then, the words related to the topic of the class. Harmer (2009) states that
whole class does a quiz which is in the web page. They do language awareness refers to teachers’ reflection upon their own
the quiz together. development; it signifies, the learners identify what it is achieved and
2. Givinginstructions: what aspects of the language need improvement.
- T asks learners to listen to a dictation and to only write the
parts of the body.
- 3.2Instructions are clear. Ls understand what they have to 3.2 In this piece of evidence, the learners show understanding of the
do since the teacher uses body language to help them language because the teacher uses body language to encourage them to
understand. comprehend what she has been saying. This fact helps learners to be
more aware of the language due to the fact that they can vocabulary
through body movements.
- T asks Ss to work on a worksheet called “language
passport” and asks them to keep it in their portfolios.
- 2.1 T explains them the lesson plan that they should use for
2.1 in this comment, it is important to mention how the classes allow
the classes we are going to observe. They need to bring it
complete in order for the advisor teacher to give them students to apply the knowledge learned in their teaching practice since
feedback. they have to plan their lessons using the content taught during the
- T fills the lesson plan format together with the Ss based on course.
the class just given. Comentario [u2]: Teache
-
4. 3. Teacher/ learner interaction in unexpected situations: 3.3 in this sample, the in-service teachers are not able to recognize their
- 3.3Learners pronounced “apple” as /eipl/ and “eyes” as pronunciation mistakes because they are not totally aware of how the
/elles/, so the teacher raised awareness on the English language and its pronunciation works; however, the teacher
pronunciation of the words. trainer gives them feedback with the purpose of having them aware of
the pronunciation of those words. Harmer (2009) states that teachers
are pronunciation models who students tend to follow; therefore,
teachers need to have a good pronunciation in order to reinforce
students’ pronunciation skills.
2.2the in-service teachers are concerned about how to apply the content
- 2.2 One learner asked the teacher for a class in which they
could learn content for 6 grade like the anatomy of the learned in the course in their teaching scenarios; therefore, they ask to
th
body. the teacher trainer if anatomy could be a topic for sixth grade.
- T asks them in what grade they teach the organs.
- T gives Ss a web page in which they can find useful
information about the body. The page is called “How the
body works”. (kidhealt.org/kid/htbw/)
4. Teachers-as-learners reaction towards the class
(content, materials, tasks…): 1.1 It is evident that the in-service teachers have a positive reaction
- 1.1Learners seem really interested when learning the body towards the class given the fact that they pronounce the words
parts and when they listen to the word “stomach”, they taught by the teacher showing a positive attitude; in this case, they
react as if the word was funny to them. touch their “stomach” as a way of being engaged and learning the
- They say it is easier in Spanish, but they can differentiate vocabulary. According to Cameroon (2004), body language and facial
the different organs as in the case of “rib cage” and “rib”. expressions are effective techniques to learn vocabulary since the
learners can experiment physically what the words mean.
1.2 This comment refers to how in-service teachers are motivated when
- 1.2Learners react very well when T gives them the web
technology is implemented in order to reinforce the content they
page about how the body works.
have learned. To exemplify this, the learners know the body parts.
When the teacher trainer gives them the web page, they react
positively since they can practice the content learned in the class at
home.
- 1.3Ss liked very much the word search activity. All of them 1.3 The in-service teachers react actively when the activities of the class
wanted to participate. are dynamic; thus, their participation is activated.
- 1.4One of them says that she does not feel capable of 1.4 In this sample, the in-service teacher expresses her feelings about
giving an English class. how to carry out an English class given the fact that she thinks that
she is not able to do it because her skills are not well develop.
5. Ss.feel that the lesson plan is complicated.
5. Teachers-as-learnersparticipation: 3.4 through this comment, it is evident that the in-service teachers are
- 3.4Learners participated actively. When learning the body motivated to learn new vocabulary; hence, their language development
parts, they were asking for other parts that the teacher didis affected positively given the fact that they are learning new words that
not tell them. help them to build up their Lexicon.
3.5 The in-service teachers are able to recognize the parts of the speech;
- 3.5Learners tell the T what the listening says and
differentiate between adjectives and the body parts. consequently, they are more aware of how the English language works .
6. Peer work: This fact allows in-service teachers to enhance their language process.
- During the class, the whole group works together in order to
complete the activities.
Transcription Analysis
Observation 27-09-2012 1.1 In this case we can analyze, that the reaction of the students towards
Name of the teacher: Dolly Ramos the material used by the teacher is positive; they show interest on the
1. ClassDevelopment: movie since they pay attention to it and perform the tasks involving it.
- Moviecalled “Más allá de los sueños”. 1.2 Here we find that they are active and willing to participate, this
- T pauses the movie and asks about the vocabulary from shows us that the task is interesting for them and provides a positive
the movie. reaction from them.
- T replays the movie. 1.3 When there is a special interest in participation, means that
- T pauses the movie again and asks them to start to something is done with joy and care. So , the students participate
formulate 3 questions (WH questions).
actively on the tasks because the topic and activities involving them are
- Ss answer their partners questions; then, T collects them
and returns them to the owners in order to look at the appropriate for them to perform.
answers and say if they are right or wrong. They read the 3.2. According to this, the students learn the vocabulary and practice it in
incorrect answers. order to widen it. They know that while they practice it they foster the
- As homework they should formulate one question with each use of the vocabulary in context, just like in the movie.
of the types of questions based on Bloom’s Taxonomy. 3.3. In this example we can conclude that the students perform the
2. Givinginstructions: activities because they know it will help them to develop their
- T uses body language in order to explain what the movie is performances in the language. When students do this, it means that they
6. about. care about the practice in the learning process.
- T explains the activity. Ss should write all the vocabulary 3.4. As mentioned in other analysis, the fact that the students react to
they can get from the movie. After 30 minutes she will participate expresses the desire of improving in the language through
pause the movie. practicing it.
- Now, they will take notes and formulate 3 WH questions 3.5. We can see that the students help each other to do a collaborative
about the movie. Then, she asks them to write the work helps them to develop and improve the language by asking not
questions in a clean piece of paper without the answers. T only the teacher but also their partners.
receives the papers. Then, she gives a different paper to
each group and asks them to answer the questions of their
partners.
- They read the incorrect questions and answers.
3. Teacher/ learner interaction in unexpected situations:
- T and monitor help Ss when they are formulating the
questions.
- When Ss speak Spanish, T asks them to say that in
English.
- T tries to explain them using body language when they do
not understand something.
4. Teachers-as-learners reaction towards the class
(content, materials, tasks…):
- They seem interested in the movie.
- They seem very active when doing the activity of
formulating the questions.
- They are very participative.
5. Teachers-as-learnersparticipation:
- They participate actively when T pauses the movie and
starts asking them about the vocabulary they got from the
movie. They have a good range of vocabulary from the
movie.
- They do the activities proposed by the teacher.
- They always want to answer to the teacher’s questions.
6. Peer work:
- They work in pairs in order to formulate 3 questions about
the movie.
- They help each other.
7. Transcription Analysis
Observation 18-10-2012 Analysis
Name of the teacher: Dolly Ramos
1. ClassDevelopment:
- T starts asking them about the lesson plan. One of the T 2.1 the teacher trainer opens the lesson by activating students’ previous
asks her if the class they have to give is according to the knowledge of the topic in which they have to recognize the applicability
grade they teach. of this topic, and how it would be taught in their classes.
- 2.1The class of today is about “culture”. T starts by asking
them what things come to their minds when they talk about
culture. T says that culture has 7 elements. T gives them a
hand out which contains the 7 elements of culture and they
start to read.
- T asks them to go to the board and write the title they have
and the most important words of it.
- T starts with the diagrams asking each group to explain
their diagram. The topics of the diagrams are economic
systems, religion, social organization, language, arts and
literature, government, and customs and traditions.
- T shows a power point presentation about culture and asks
some learners to read. They start with social organizations;
then, customs and traditions, language, arts and literature,
religion, forms of government, and economic systems.
- Ls are going to share the differences they found when
comparing the two Colombian cultures.
- 2.2Finally, T asks learners what topics have they thought 2.2 In this part of the class, the in-service teachers are asked to think
for the class they should give. Then, they write the lesson about possible topics to be applied in their teaching scenarios; therefore,
plan for today’s class in order for learners to solve doubts
the teacher trainer helps them to fill a lesson plan format in which they
they have about the parts of the lesson plan since they say
can observe how to organize and plan a lesson taking into account the
that the lesson plan is very complicated to complete.
2. Givinginstructions: knowledge learned in the course.
- T asks them to read and then to go to the board and write
the most important words of the text.
- T explains the exercise of the important words for learners
8. to understand what they have to do.
- In the same groups they need to select two Colombian
cultures for comparing them and say four differences they
find between them.
3. Teacher/ learner interaction in unexpected situations: 2.3 The teacher trainer makes emphasis on the applicability of the
- 2.3T explains them that the class they have to give is about content learned in the course to be taught in the in-service teachers’
one topic of content and that it does not have to be about a classes. It is relevant to mention that the content should be connected to
specific subject. the subjects the students have taken and not to teach isolated topics.
- Angelica explains the difference between “republic” and
“democracy”, but in Spanish, which make the other learners
participate also in Spanish.
- T asks them to try to make an effort and use English.
- T uses Radha in order to talk about religious groups.
- George keeps answering the phone during the whole class
and does not put in vibration mode.
- T has to call the attention of Liliana and her partner since
they keep talking.
- Every time George enters the classroom after answering
the phone, he interrupts the class.
- T has to call the attention of George because he was
interrupting the class with his talking.
4. Teachers-as-learners reaction towards the class
(content, materials, tasks…):
- T helps them with the pronunciation of “language”,
“literature”, and “customs”. 3.1 The in- service teachers are more aware of the necessity of learning Comentario [u3]: Teache
- 3.1Some learners are using dictionary to look for the words
the meaning of the new words; that is why, they use the dictionary as a
they do not understand.
tool to understand what the words mean.
- Liliana (the one that says that always feels lost) is always
sitting in the back.
- 1.1 Learners really liked the exercise with the diagram
because it facilitates their understanding. Comentario [u4]: How it
- Some learners are talking about different things from the evidenced?
topic of the class.
- Learners really liked the topic of culture. 1.2 It is noticeable that learners are connecting their own culture to the
- 1.2 Learners reacted surprised when the T was explaining target culture; therefore, their reaction towards the content of the class
that in other countries they have different ways of greeting was a surprise for them given the fact that they are learning different
9. as in USA that people never kiss when saying “hello” as aspects of the target culture which were unknown for them.
Colombian people do.
5. Teachers-as-learnersparticipation:
- Learners give many elements about culture such as history,
arts, music, painting, habits and religion.
- Learners participate actively during the diagram activity.
6. Peer work:
- They work in the same groups of 3 for doing all the
exercises.
Comments:
- 2.4One T says that it is really useful to make activities with 2.4 It is remarkable to mention that the in-service teachers are reflecting
diagrams since they are making the subdivisions of a big on the applicability of the topics learned throughout the course in a way
topic and at the end they are going to join the information they are connecting those topics to understand them, and later to put
and it will be easier to understand the topic. them into practice.
- Rosa asks Radha why it is easier to understand Dolly, but
when they are listening to natural conversations it is so
difficult to understand.
- Liliana and her partner are the ones who say that feel lost
and are the ones that most talk when the T is explaining.
- It is really interesting the way T calls learners’ attention
since she uses topics about what surrounds them like
neighborhoods, so learners are really engaged and are
participating very actively.
- Rosa says that they need to know how to differentiate
between content objectives and language objectives.
10. Transcription Analysis
Observation 18-10-2012 Teachers’ Language awareness
Name of the teacher: Claudia Cardenas 1.5 After being exposed to a listening exercise, the learners reviewed the
vocabulary heard in the exercise in order to assure understanding.
1. ClassDevelopment: 4.3 Due to lack of vocabulary the teachers carried out a speaking task in
- T starts with a review about last class topic (organs). T asks their L1, and they hardly tried to use the L2. It is important to highlight
students to repeat the pronunciation. the fact that in many occasions they do not try hard enough to develop
- The pace among the activities is really low. their speaking skill, and it might be to a lack of self-confidence as second
- T asks them to do a listening activity. During the listening
language learners.
activity, the students write down what they hear.
4.4 Teachers showed a negative attitude through a listening exercise
- Teacher interacts with the vocabulary after the listening, the
blocking themselves. In their words they did not feel prepared to cope
students explore the vocabulary as well as.
- T activates vocabulary through a speaking activity in which with a listening activity. Attitude influences in a big way when being
they practice the organs again. exposed to challenges in the second language.
2. Givinginstructions: 5.1 The in-service teachers felt motivated to include some of the
- T gives instructions in English without agreeing or vocabulary studied during the lesson in their oral production. It is
disagreeing. fundamental to point out that the use of code-switching in this case
- T uses some Spanish words to clarify the instructions gives evidence of progress in the language development of the learners.
- T asks them to listen and write down what they understand 6.3 Even though most of the learners’ talking time was in Spanish it is
- Students are asked to go to the board voluntarily. T has to important to underline the fact that the made the effort and used the
change the task because ss do not take the initiative. words studied in the class which were related to the organs of the
- For bigger activities, T has to use Spanish then English. human body. This event reflects awareness from the learners and
3. Teacher/ learner interaction in unexpected situations: motivation to apply the knowledge learnt.
- T’s voice projection is very low so students get distracted 6.4 at some point the teachers are aware of the fact that the speaking
easily. activity that is being developed should be carried out in the L2, but they
- T monitors students when doing the activities. seemed to only do it when the teacher walked around the classroom
- T corrects mistakes in Spanish.
monitoring. This fact reveals some lack of autonomy from the in-service
- T corrects pronunciation making them repeat the way she
teachers.
pronounces.
4. Teachers-as-learners reaction towards the class
(content, materials, tasks…): Teachers’ perceptions towards the class
- Ss respond actively to the review of the topic “organs of the 4.1Since the topic about organs has been addressed in more than one
body”. class the teachers started to feel confident talking about it and they had
a good response when the teachers’ trainer proposed different activities
11. - Ss do not react positively when they have to talk closing the around the matter mentioned previously.
notebooks. 4.2 The learners showed some level of dependency on their written
- Ss agree to do the tasks but take long and talk in Spanish. notes at the moment of producing a little speech without any input apart
- Ss say they are not prepared to do listening exercises. from the knowledge studied before.
5. Teachers-as-learnersparticipation: 5.2 At the very beginning of the activity, the learners showed themselves
- Ss participate with isolated words in English. pretty concerned about failing since they did not have their notes handy,
- Ss react scarily when T asks them to close the notebooks but as the activity kept on and the learners noticed that they could recall
to do an activity so they don’t participate actively. However, the vocabulary needed they got much more confident. The attitude they
they get confident when they are right in the answers.
have in class time affects highly the outcome they will get out of any
- Ss read sentences they created.
6. Peer work: task.
- Ss have to write a brief description about one of the organs.
- Ss write individually even though T asked them to work in
pairs.
- Ss TT is in Spanish only the organs are said in English.
- Ss have to interview themselves, they do it in Spanish but
when T approaches they talk in English.
Comments:
- Low pacing.
- Not activate.
- Too much time in a single activity.
12. Transcription Analysis
Name of the teacher: Dolly Ramos.
Date of observation: October 22, 2012
Class development
The class has a coherent development. Everything is connected
to the topic (the games, activities, etc.).
The class starts with an activity that one of the in-service
teachers had planned. (lottery with vocabulary of means of
transportations, clothing)
The class transitions to the in-service teachers reviewing
different types of food.
The class then transitions to a content class about health and the
pyramid group.
Giving instructions 1.1. The in-service teachers have a better reaction towards the class
1.1 Code switching is constant, to maintain the in-service when the teacher uses code switching due to the fact that it helps them
teachers engagement. understand what the teacher is saying.
2.1 Uses a lot of body movement and gestures to make herself 2.1. The teacher uses different strategies such as body movement and
understood. gestures in order for the in-service teachers to understand what she is
T/L interaction in unexpected situations saying.
Had to call the attention to George that was being loud, and
interrupting other ss’ talking time. 1.2. The in-service teachers show an appropriate reaction towards the
Ts as Ls reactions towards the class development of the class. They feel interested in the topic being taught,
1.2 The in-service teachers are all engaged in the class. which makes them be engaged with the class.
(Constanza Holguin) always has a dictionary in hand. She is a bit 2.2. This in-service teacher feels that she needs to use the dictionary in
distracted. order to know the meaning of the words that she does not know instead
Ts as Ls participation of asking the teacher. This action of looking for the words at the
dictionary makes her be distracted since she is more worried about
1.3 When the in-service teachers are asked to go up to the board
knowing the meaning of the words than the class itself.
and write any vocabulary they remember about food, they all
1.3. The in-service teachers show being interested in participating during
participate.
this activity, which demonstrates that they know the vocabulary and that
1.4 (Dicsa and xiomara) not participating and constantly talking.
they want to contribute to the development of the class.
1.5 (viviana) participates often, using full sentences.
1.4. This act of talking shows that these in-service teachers are not
Andres participates most of the time.
engaged in the activity and that they do not want to contribute to the
Angelica is constantly getting up to participate when writing on
13. the board. class.
Lina, liliana, rosa, Andres, diana pachonparticipate. 1.5. The participation of these in-service teachers let us think that they
Peer work feel really motivated and engaged in the development of the class.
Andres constantly is helping in terms of vocabulary and helping his peers
complete their sentences.
Transcription Analysis
Name of the teacher: Dolly Ramos
Date of observation: October 25th 2012.
Class development
The class starts with the gathering for all the fruits and
food that the ss were supposed to bring for a comitiva.
The class transitions to a game of lottery, where the t
gives the t some cards with the fruits on them, and she
makes them guess the fruit what is going to be shown
by describing it.
There was a break from 3:15 to 3.50 to prepare the
fruit salad, and eat it.
3.50 to 4.05 Schedule arrangements for the
observation dates.
The t arranges the ss in groups of 4 and hands them a
couple of papers with some adjective to look at, and
deduce what they are. Then she socializes the wors and
invites the ss to participate by using the adjectives in
whole sentences.
4.45 a pause for logs.
Feedback on their lesson plans.
14. Giving instructions
1.1The instructions are very clear, said slowly, using a 1.1. it is shown that in this case, the students
lot of cognates and body gestures. demonstrate the clarity of the teacher’s instructions since
The ss understand the task easily. they understand without difficulties what she is saying.
Liliana does not understand the instructions and turns The use of gestures and cognates it’s a strategy that
to angelica for explanation. increases the level of understanding when explanining
Lina is uncertain about a word and asks nancy. something in a second language.
T/L interaction in unexpected situations
Angelita and viviana answer the cell phone in the class.
The t uses body gestures to explain an adjective (sad)
The ss are constantly laughing at the teachers jokes
which are in English.
Lina is constantly looking around and talking to the ss
next to her.
Yannis is constantly making other ss laugh by saying
dirty jokes and using English in a silly way.
Yannis says: “I’m hard” Andres laughs, but he is
unaware of what he said.
Angelica says: “no conosco la musica de el” when the
teacher says she will say the antonyms and they are
going to raise the adjectives that goes with it.
Ts as Ls reactions towards the class
2.1All the ss are engaged when talking about the fruit 2.1. It can be analyzed that students use the new topic to
they don’t like. express something true from their lives because it is one
2.2.Engaged and giving a lot of opinions about movies, of the effective ways in which a person can develop a
politics and other aspects, by using the adjectives language. They are aware of the importance of practicing
provided to them by the T. so they do it in an engaged way.
The ss are very competitive when playing the game of 2.2. As mentioned before, the awareness of the
the adjectives importance of the practice in order to develop the
Ts as Ls participation language is what motivates the students to participate in
classes with the purpose of improving and correction of
2.2They are all participating in naming the fruits
mistakes. Also, the students solve doubts in order to
they brought as the teacher shows it t them
foster the correct use of the structures and vocabulary
Lina and andnancy and constantly talking to each asking their partners or the teacher to help them when
other, but about the topics.
15. Yanis is on the cell phone, but participates. they know they have a problem.
2.2Xiomara participates constantly
2.2Andres gives a whole sentence about (sad)
using George as an example
Angelica, Liliana, and (in red) are not participating
in the activity they are writing the adjectives and
their antonyms while other participate.
Peer work
Language awareness
2.2Diana cano is constantly answering in whole
sentences.
2.3Viviana corrects herself when she is
answering.She uses Whole sentences, and tries to 2.3. It can be concluded that the awareness of the
make herself understood even if she doesn’t know language is also shown when the students self-correct
the words to express it. their mistakes; they present their willing to improve their
own language development.
Andres asks about the difference between either
and neither.
The T invites and raises awareness on the
pronunciation of some words when they are
pronounced wrong.
Comments
LILIana : “yo no entiendo” and is constantly turning
to angelica
16. Transcription Analysis
Name of the teacher: Claudia Cardenas.
Date of observation: October 25th 2012.
Class development
- T starts asking learners about the content learned
during the previous class which was “seasons”.
- Students should present a poster, but before it, T
and monitor help learners with the pronunciation
and the organization of their presentation.
- T starts telling them that today they are going to
talk about natural disasters and asks learners to
tell her some natural disasters such as floods,
tsunami, earthquakes, and avalanche.
- Then, learners start presenting their posters. T
stops the first presentation to ask learners if they
understood.
- Learners make three presentations and finally T
and monitor start giving them feedback on the
lesson plan for the class they should give.
T/L interaction in unexpected situations
- T asks learners to practice the pronunciation of
their presentation.
- T asks learners to pay attention to the
presentations of their partners.
Ts as Ls reactions towards the class 2.1 Here the learners are required to have understood
- T helps learners with the pronunciation and the the presentation in order to explain what it is about in
organization of their presentations. their own words.
- When learners present the vocabulary of their
presentation, T asks them to explain it since they
just named it.
17. - In order to check understanding of the
presentation, T asks learners what it was about.
- When learners do not remember something, T
remembers them what this mean or is about as
when she asked them what was “pouring” and
they did not remember.
- T makes questions that help with the
understanding of the presentations. 2.2 learners were aware that they didn’t understand
some words, and reached out for help in order to
Ts as Ls participation understand better their peers’ presentations.
- Learners participated actively during the
presentations, but there were some learners who
could not present since they did not have clear
what they had to do.
- Learners were asking the vocabulary they did not
understand, which made the class more active and 2.3 Magdalena is aware of her weaknesses and is being
dynamic. autonomous by exposing herself to real English through
videos, and listening to improve her pronunciation and
Peer work understanding of language.
- Learners work in groups of three for doing their
presentation.
Language awareness 2.4 the learners express that the visual aids helped them
- Magdalena tells to the monitor that she studies at understand the presentations and the topic in a better
home, listening to videos to train her ear and that way
these activities had helped her with the 2.5 learners are aware of the gaps in their vocabulary and
pronunciation and understanding the teacher. She have the need to switch to their L1 to not interfere with
also looks at the list if verbs and she said “now I their presentation.
know that we say I did and you did in the past”.
- When the first group is doing the presentation,
learners say that they understand what they are
saying because of the images they are using. 2.6 The learner is aware of her lack of understanding,
- Learners code switch during the presentation which then turns into frustration.
when they do not know the words.
- One learner says “don’t not” and the teacher
18. explains them that you say “don’t” or “do not”.
Comments
- María Isabel Alvarez said to the monitor that she
feels frustrated because she does not understand,
so the monitor tells her that it is a process in
which she needs to be autonomous and that at
the beginning it is difficult, but then it will get
easier with the practice.
19. Transcription Analysis
Observation 15-11-2012
Name of the teacher: Dolly Ramos
Class Development:
- 1.1 The class started with a discussion about 2.4 this piece of evidence shows how the teacher wants
how the teachers felt during the English class to know the in-service teachers’ perceptions
they carried out. regarding the course; especially, how do they feel
- Then, T asked learners what sports do they learning another language and how they feel when
know, what sports do they practice, and how they are in the course using the language.
often do they practice those sports.
- Then, T gives them a worksheet and asks
them to relate the images to the name of the
sports. After, T starts to relate the sports to the
skills, the values, and the characteristics of
them, and asks learners to finish relating the
other sports with these aspects.
- 2.1 T asks learners to work in groups and she 2.1 In this sample, the teacher has students relate
relates different topics such as superlatives, grammatical topics such as: comparatives, superlatives,
values, skills, and characteristics using the values; by doing this connection between linguistic
same topic (sports). content and the content itself (sports), the teacher
- Then, T shows a video about amazing people fosters the communicative competence because she is
20. doing different sports. raising awareness on the elements of the language, how
Giving instructions: is it connected, and its values (sociolinguistic
- T gives clear explanations so that learners do competence), with a situation that encounters the in-
the activities correctly. service teachers to use the language for communicative
Teacher/ learner interaction in unexpected purposes, in this case, through sports which is a topic
situations: very common on our society.
- Learners knew different sports and they
shared them with the rest of the group. 2.2 Through this piece of evidence, the teacher is
- 2.2 When learners are participating in groups,
implementing an engaging methodology which is group
T asks different people to participate, so it is
not always the same person who participates. work. It is said that this kind of methodology encourages
- When T talks about food, learners start to talk the in-service teachers to participate actively in the class
a lot. since they can share information with other partners that
Teachers-as-learners reaction towards the class then it is going to be socialized.
(content, materials, tasks…):
- Learners are very interested in the topic of
sports.
- Learners laugh when they are talking about
the funniest sports.
- 2.3 Learners react very well when the teacher 2.3 in this particular point of the class, the learners were
starts to talk about health and nutrition relating willing to learn the topic of nutrition since this topic is
them to the sports. relatively important not only to be applied in their
teaching practice but also in their daily routine. This fact
demonstrates that the topics taught in the P.D are part of
the students’ real life so that they can use them.
- Learners were really engaged with the video
about amazing people; they were doing
sounds of excitement.
Teachers-as-learners participation:
- 1.2 All learners participate when talking about
the sports since the teacher fosters 1.2 Since the teacher implements different strategies
participation. such as: eliciting information to students, asking
- T asks each group to participate when sharing questions, guiding questions, group work to increase in-
the different sports. service teachers’ participation, they really want to
Peer work: participate actively to the class having as a base that the
21. - First, learners work in pairs. topic of sports is a topic that they like so that it facilitates
- Finally, T asks two pairs to get together so that participation.
they become a group of four people. Each pair
will share the information they have and the
other pair will say if they agree or disagree
with that information.
Language awareness:
- 2.4 Learners are aware of different vocabulary 2.4 In this part, it can be said that the in-service teachers
related to physical characteristics and try to
are raising awareness on how the English language works
make relations between that vocabulary and
the sports. given the fact that they are learning new vocabulary and
- Learners demonstrate that they remember its properties (if a word is a noun, an adjective, a verb)
topics from the previous classes. and how they can connect the new vocabulary with the
content they are learning; it signifies, that the topic and
the language are integrated and they are not learnt in
isolation.
-2.5 Diana Rendón pronounces the word
“vegetables” incorrectly, so the teacher raises 2.5 in this sample, the teacher is helping to one student
awareness on the pronunciation of that word. to raise awareness on the way she pronounces a
- When learners said “I would like to water specific word so that in future times, the in- service
pool”, the teacher raised awareness on the teacher; who is a student, can pronounce the word in
mistake and learners corrected themselves a correct way.
saying “I would like to practice water pool”.
Comments:
- Nancy says that she felt comfortable when
giving the English class, but sometimes she
forgot some words, and also the students felt
weird since they are not used to the English
language in the content classes, just in their
English classes.
- 2.6 Diana Rendón says that at the beginning
she felt nervous, but then she felt happy since 2.6 According to this sample, the in-service teacher’s
she made a feedback session with the feeling towards the implementation class was anxiety at
students and she saw that they understood the moment of giving the content class on the grounds of
the topic even though it was a difficult subject the fact that it was the first time that she conducts an
22. (mathematics). English class; however, she expresses that when she was
- George is using his phone. Dolly asks him to monitoring students’ work, she realized that they learned
stop using it but he says he does not want to what she taught during the class having as a base that
since he is waiting for the results of the mathematics is a complex subject matter to teach
football match. because the vocabulary and the word are very technical,
but she expresses that although it was a complex
content, the students understood what she taught.
Transcription Analysis
Claudia Cardenas , November 15th. 2012
class development:
Warm up activity done by the monitor. ss respond
interested on the game of reach the bubble.
T introduces the topic of comparisons through a ppp
implicitly using the human body parts.
teachers as learners interactions:
In English mostly, ss have developed their skill of 2.1 it could be said that the teacher was trying to have
listening so Spanish is no longercrucial to understand students aware of the pronunciation of some words so
the topics. T checks pronunciation asking the S's to that the in-service teachers can use the words in order to
repeat after her. S's repeat. avoid the use of the Spanish language in the class and
also to foster the use of the target language.
peer work:
S's don't like when they have to work with a partner
23. they are not used to. Comentario [u5]: Negativ
pair work.
language awareness:
Liliana selfcorrects, Diana too when the t pronounces
the same words they did.
teacher's reactions towards the class:
S's like the game to warm up but they get lazy when
the t asks tumor to get in groups. However, they
work property.
giving instructions:
In this piece of evidence, the in-service teachers
Monitor gives English instructions for the warm up,
demonstrate that in some moments of the class they
few times she needs to use Spanish since the ss do
need their mother tongue to understand propertly the
not understand when she speaks in English. Comentario [u6]: In servi
instruction given by the teacher and some of them show rejection to the target langua
rejection to the target language since they do not
comments: challenge themselves to understand the English language
and they ask to the teacher to speak in Spanish.
S's have developed more, the change is noticeable,
the pacing of the activities is so long that the S's have
to tell the teacher. it was not possible to observe
much since the class was rebelled with the same
activity.
24. CODES
Teachers’ language awareness
Teachers’ perceptions towards the Professional Development Class
Pondering upon “general things”